Chair with folding table leaf



June 14, 1949. E. B. MORGAN ET AL CHAIR WITH FOLDING TABLE LEAF Filed June 7, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Irving .B.Moz-9an t? Royce Wt'lay WM W,

June 14, 1949. E. B. MORGAN ET AL 2,473,037

CHAIR WITH FOLDING TABLE LEAF Filed June 7, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 .Erdiug B Morgan s) Royce clay Patented June 14, 1949 UNITED STATES PTENT OFFICE CHAIR WITH FOLDING TABLE LEAF of New Jersey Application June 7, 1947, Serial No. 753,344

(Cl. 155-188) J 2 Claims.

The present invention relates to chair structures and more particularly to chairs of the auditorium type provided with table leaves or arms adapted to support tablets, books or other articles.

The primary objects of the invention are to provide a chair structure which is mounted between spaced, upright standards one of which is provided with an aisle illuminating device and with a table arm or leaf mounted thereon for movement to a horizontal position of use and to a lowered position beneath the chair seat when not in use; to provide improved means for latching the table leaf in its horizontal use position; and in general to provide such a structure which is efiicient in use, attractive in appearance and econornical to manufacture.

A preferred embodiment of the invention i illustrated by the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary, perspective view of a chair of the auditorium type having aisle lighting means and a table leaf mounted on one of the chair-supporting standards;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary, inner perspective view of the aisle-side supporting standard with the aisle light cover member removed;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary, front elevational view of the right hand portion of the chair structure;

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional View of the same taken on line 44 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary top plan view of the aisle-side supporting standard, the table leaf, and the attaching means therefor;

Figure 6 is a sectional view of the same taken on lines 66 of Figures 4 and 5; and

Figure '7 is a sectional view thereof taken on line l1 of Figure 5.

Referring now in detail to these drawings, the chair structure there shown comprises spaced, upright, chair-supporting standards H], II on which are mounted a stationary back 12 and a seat l3 which is pivotally connected by means of seat arms M to the standards so that the seat may be lowered to its position for occupancy shown in the drawings, or turned upwardly to facilitate sweeping thereunder. The supporting standard H is of the middle standard type adapted to support the adjacent sides of two chairs disposed side-by-side in a row of such chairs, and the standard It] is of the end standard type which is used to support the outer sides of the chairs at the ends of rows and which is fre- 2 quently equipped with an aisle light for illuminating the aisle immediately adjacent thereto.

The aisle lighting device here shown comprises a recess or cavity i5 cast in the end standard [0, which cavity communicates with a light emitting opening l6 through the wall of the standard near the upper end thereof. A cover member I! is secured to the inner wall of the standard adjacent the cavity l5 as by means of screws l8 passing through apertures in the cover member and threaded in the standard. A housing is thus formed for a lamp IS mounted by means of a bracket 213 on the standards inner wall, and electric wire connections 2! enter the housing through a conduit 22 and are attached to the lamp for illuminating the same.

The cover member I1 is of special design to provide a mounting for a folding table leaf 23, said cover member having an integrally cast, depending bearing portion 24 on which is swingably mounted a bracket 25. The bracket 25 is thus mounted for swinging movement about a horizontal axis to a forwardly extending position and to a downwardly-extending position. The outer swinging end of the bracket 25 has spaced lugs 26, 21 cast thereon, in which are secured the opposite ends of a rod 28 the axis of which extends in a forwardly-rearwardly direction when the bracket 25 is in its raised, forwardly extending position. A plate 29 is secured to the underside of the table leaf 23 as by means of wood screws at 30, and said plate 29 has spaced, depending bearings 3|, 32 which are freely turnable on the rod 28. The table leaf is thus mounted on the outer swinging end of the bracket 25 for turning movements to a horizontal use position and to a vertical position for clearing the chair seat during the swinging movements of the bracket 25. A coiled compression spring 33 surrounds the rod 28 and has its opposite ends connected to the lug 2! on bracket 25 and to the plate 29 on the table leaf 23. This spring 33 serves to normally urge the table leaf 23 to its horizontal use position shown in full lines in Figures 1 and 2 when the bracket 25 is in its forwardly extending position, and to a rearwardly turned position beneath the chair seat [3 when the bracket 25 is in its downwardly extending position.

The rearward or inner end of the plate 29 is formed to provide a latch element 34 having a laterally extending latch key 35. The upper, forward portion of the cover member I! is cast to form a keeper element 36 having a keeper socket 31 in which the latch key 35 engages when the table arm 23 is in its horizontal position of use, thus latching the bracket 25 in its forwardly extending position.

When it is desired to fold the table leaf 23 from its use position indicated at A downwardly to its position of non-use indicated at D the leaf is first raised to-a vertical position indicated at B. This movement disengages the latch' .key 35 from its keeper socket 31 and at the same time positions the table leaf so that it will clear the chair seat during lowering movement of the bracket 25. The bracket is thenswun'g-do'wnwardly so that the table leaf occupies the position indicated at C, and the table leaf'is'turned rearwardly to its position indicated-at D by" the action of the spring 33. When it is desired to raise the table leaf to use position, the movements are just the reverse of those described above. The inner or rearward surface of the latch key 35 is cammed at 38 so that when the bracket 25 approaches its raised forwardly extending position, this cammed surface 38 engages the keeper elementgifi and automatically turns the leaf 23 to its vertical position indicated at B so that the latch Iggy-is in position to engage in the keeper socket It will thus be seen that the present invention provides an effective combination folding table leaf and cover member for the lamp housing,

which unit may be installed on the pre-installed standard l0 with a minimum of labor by merely inserting and tightening the-screws I 8. While but one specific embodiment of the invention has been herein shown and described, it will be understood that numerous details may be altered or omitted without departingfrom the spirit of the invention asthe same is defined by the following claims. 4

We claim:

1. In a chair structure provided with an upright supporting standard having a light emitting opening through its wall near the upper end thereof, having a lamp positioned on the inner side ofthelst'andard adjacent said opening, and

portion on which the bracket mounted.

2. 1m a chair structure provided with an upright supporting standard having a light emitting openinge through its wall near the upper end thereof, having a lamp positioned on the inner side of tlziestandard adjacent said openings, and having a table leaf turnably mounted on a bracket associated with the standard for swinging movement to a forwardly extending position wherein the table leaf may be turned to a horizontal position for use and to a vertical position for-clearing the chairiseat during the brackets movement to a downwardly extending vposition with the table leaf beneath said seat, said table leaf being provided with a latch on its rearward end: a unitary member secured to the inner side of the standard and having a cover portion forming with the standard a housing forthel-am-p, a depending portion on which the bracket isswingably mounted, and a keeper portionfor engaging the latch on the table leaf to .releasably secure said table leaf in its raised horizontal positionfor use. v

- I ERVING B. MORG ROYCE-W. CLAY.

Number ame Date 1,223,576 Gartrell Apr. 24, 1917 1,905,859 Hamilton Apr. 25, 1 933 

